Best smart home systems 2025: From entry-level to all-powerful

It’s never been easier–or less expensive–to build out a state-of-the art smart home. We have other roundups that name the best smart home components–everything from the best smart bulbs to the best smart speakers, but in this story, we name the best hubs–the central controllers–that make home living more convenient.

While the lines are becoming increasingly blurred, we see two basic types of smart home systems: Those focused on convenience first–the hubs listed here–and those focused on home security first (and here are our top DIY home security system picks). Decide first what is your primary goal–convenience or security–and then shop accordingly.

The best smart home systems

Samsung SmartThings Station – Best DIY smart home hub for most people

Pros

• Wi-Fi, Zigbee, and Thread radios onboard
• Stuffed with bonus features, including a wireless phone charger
• Matter support adds immense flexibility

Cons

• Won’t work without a broadband connection
• No Z-Wave radio
• No battery backup or cellular backup

Best Prices Today:

$94.99

Who should buy the Samsung SmartThings Station

While it has lost the ability to control Z-Wave devices, the Samsung SmartThings Station it has been transformed into a powerful Matter-certified smart home hub. It’s a big step up from the simpler Ikea Dirigera hub in that it will control virtually any Matter-certified product, and it’s very easy to use. If you already have a non-Matter SmartThings hub, such as the Aeotec Smart Home Hub, you can easily transition everything but your Z-Wave devices to this hub.

Samsung SmartThings Station: Further considerations

If you’re looking to build out a Matter-compatible smart home, the Samsung SmartThings Station is the smart home hub you’re looking for. While Samsung also integrates SmartThings hub features into its smart TVs, smart monitors, and even its high-end refrigerators, this stand-alone hub is at least as powerful as those, and it’s much easier to work with. It also features an integrated inductive charging pad for your smartphone and other compatible devices. If you do want to control Z-Wave devices, stick with Aeotec’s hub (see below).

Read our full

Samsung SmartThings Station review

Amazon Echo Hub — Best smart home hub with a display

Pros

• Supports Wi-Fi, Matter, Zigbee, Thread, Bluetooth LE Mesh, and Sidewalk
• Easy to set up, customize, master, and use on an everyday basis
• Supports advanced connectivity options such as Power over Ethernet

Cons

• No Z-Wave radio, battery backup, or cellular backup
• Only responds to Alexa voice commands
• Pricey overkill for those with just a few smart home devices to control

Best Prices Today:

$179.99

Who should buy the Amazon Echo Hub

A wall-mounted control panel is one of the characteristic features of a high-end smart home system. Most every professionally installed system–Vivint Smart Home, Crestron, Savant, etc.–has one, with a touchscreen that can display your security camera feeds, control your lights and other components, and arm/disarm your home security system. Amazon’s Echo Hub is an affordable panel that can do all that, and it’s especially great when paired with Alexa-compatible smart home devices, Ring security cameras and a Ring Alarm or Ring Alarm Pro system.

Amazon Echo Hub: Further considerations

The Amazon Echo Hub will be of most interest to hardcore Alexa users–it’s also an Echo smart display–and people who use Ring home security products. While it’s functional right out of the box, you’ll want to spend time customizing its layout to take full advantage of everything it has to offer, including displaying feeds from your compatible security cameras (while you’re not limited to Ring cameras, they will deliver the best experience). The display is designed to be hung on the wall–there’s no desktop stand–but it supports Power over Ethernet (data, video, and power are carried over the same low-voltage cable). Run an ethernet cable through your wall, and you won’t have an unsightly power cord dangling from it.

Read our full

Amazon Echo Hub review

Ikea Dirigera – Best DIY smart home hub for newbies

Pros

• Inexpensive
• Easy to use
• Supports Amazon Alexa, Apple Home, and Google Home
• Works as a Matter bridge and Thread border router (after a firmware update)

Cons

• Must be hardwired to your router
• No Z-Wave radio, battery backup, or cellular backup
• Limited feature set

Best Prices Today:

Who should buy the Ikea Dirigera smart home hub

The Ikea Dirigera is a great choice for newcomers to the smart home market who just want things to work without having to muck about. Ikea’s companion app is supremely easy to use and offers plenty of handholding to step you through getting it set up and adding smart home devices. A recent firmware update makes the hub a Matter bridge, meaning you’re no longer limited to controlling Ikea’s own products with it, and it activated the hub’s Thread radio as well, enabling it to perform as a Thread border router. It’s compatible with Amazon Alexa, Apple Home, and Google Home, so you can use voice commands to control everything.

Ikea Dirigera smart home hub: Further considerations

The simplicity of the Ikea Dirigera smart home hub and the Ikea Home app makes for a great smart home onramp. Ikea has lots of its own smart home accessories–ranging from basic smart plugs to motorized window shades–and the recent activation of the hub’s Thread radio and Matter certification open the door to lots of third-party devices.

Read our full

Ikea Dirigera review

Other notable smart home hubs we’ve tested

We’ve evaluated lots of other DIY smart home systems. If none of our top picks check all the boxes for you, take a look at these other products.

• Aqara Hub E1 is very similar to Aqara’s Hub M3 system, except it plugs into a USB power adapter and doesn’t have its stablemate’s infrared blaster feature. And like the Hub M2, the Hub E1 controls only Aqara Zigbee devices.
• Aqara Hub M3 is mostly about the convenience aspects of the smart home. It’s very easy to set up; it has Wi-Fi, Thread, and Zigbee radios; and it’s Matter-compatible. It can’t control third-party Zigbee directly, however; it can only control Aqara’s own Zigbee products.
• Homey Bridge is a SmartThings-like smart home hub that supports Wi-Fi, Zigbee, Z-Wave, Bluetooth, 433MHz, and infrared devices. Like SmartThings, it’s focused primarily on convenience versus home security. But you’re limited to just five devices unless you pay for a subscription.
• Hubitat Elevation (model C7) is a powerful smart home hub favored by many hardcore enthusiasts. It supports Matter and has , and unlike the Aeotec Smart Home Hub we like so much, Hubitat’s product isn’t reliant on a connection to the internet. Less-experienced users, however, will encounter a steep learning curve.
• SwitchBot Hub 2 is primarily a gateway for other SwitchBot smart home products, but it can also serve as a Matter bridge for a host of third-party products. It has been replaced by the SwitchBot Hub 3, so look for our review soon.

How to choose the best DIY smart home system

As we mentioned earlier, smart home systems come in a dazzling array of shapes and sizes, from brain-dead simple to vastly complex. Features vary just as widely, so you’ll need to pay more attention than usual when you’re narrowing down the field to find the product that’s right for you. Here’s a look at some of those key decision factors. To see how each system on the market measures up to those promises, drill down into our reviews.

Which smart home standards does the hub support?

This might be your most important consideration, because it will dictate which smart home devices you can install in your home. Some security-focused smart home hubs, such as SimpliSafe, only work with their own accessories. Some others, such as the Ring Alarm series, have certification programs for third-party products. This is less of a problem with smart home hubs that focus on convenience.

Matter has long promised to be the standard that will tie all the leading smart home ecosystems together: Amazon Alexa, Apple Home, Google Home, Samsung SmartThings, and more. While it’s not quite there–principally because Matter doesn’t take every aspect of the smart home into account (e.g., security cameras), it continues to make solid progress toward that goal.

While Matter puts an umbrella over Wi-Fi, Bluetooth, Zigbee, and Thread, it ignores Z-Wave, a technology that offers some features none of those other platforms do. If your smart home is already filled with smart home devices, you won’t want to replace them for the sake of a new hub. Fortunately, Matter and Z-Wave are not mutually exclusive, and several smart home hubs support both standards, including Homey, Home Assistant, and Hubitat Elevation.

If you already have, or you intend to buy smart speakers, make syre the hub you buy is compatible. Amazon Echo and Google Nest smart speakers are almost universally supported; Apple’s HomePod speakers much less so.

Wired vs. wireless hub connection

Many smart hubs must connect to your wireless router via an ethernet cable, which limits their placement and, of course, requires a free ethernet port on your router (if all your router ports are occupied, buy an inexpensive switch). A smaller number of hubs are wireless and can be placed anywhere in range of the router, increasing your flexibility.

Local control vs. cloud dependent

Some smart home hubs depend on a connection to the cloud (i.e., the internet) to operate. Even with a fast broadband connection, you might notice a delay as your commands go up to the internet, are processed by a server in the cloud, and then come back down to the hub and out to the device the command is intended for. And if your broadband connection should fail, your smart home instantly turns dumb. That won’t be a problem with a smart home hub that processes everything locally.

Broadband backup

Smart home hubs that are focused on home security should have a backup means of connecting to the internet should your regular broadband connection fail. This is typically handled by a cellular radio on the device. If it doesn’t have a backup, and you’re paying for professional monitoring that can dispatch first-responders in the event of a break-in or other emergency, the hub will have no way to reach that call center. The cost for this type of backup is usually included in the subscription fee for professional monitoring.

Battery backup

If the power goes out, your smart lights won’t be useful anyway; but other smart home features, such as security sensors, rely on a hub that’s always powered on. Some smart home hubs feature battery backups (thanks to rechargeable or disposable cells). Even a short power outage can cause a significant delay while the hub reconnects, so a battery backup makes sense in many home environments. If you like everything else about a particular hub that lacks a battery backup option, consider investing in an uninterruptible power supply to plug it into.

Sensor range

If your home is large or spread out, you’ll need to pay attention to the range that the hub’s sensors support. Hubs may support a wide array of connection protocols, including Bluetooth, Wi-Fi, Z-Wave, and Zigbee, all of which have very different ranges. As with a wireless router, smart hub range can also be impacted by interference and device placement, and smart home devices themselves have different specs, as well. Take the time to look into the detailed specs to be sure sensors and third-party devices will work with your home’s infrastructure.

Mobile app usability

You’ll probably be interacting with your hub primarily through its mobile app, so you’ll want one that’s intuitive and powerful, with all the key features you use front and center. Our reviews cover this topic and include app screenshots to give you a sense of what you’ll be dealing with on the app side of things.

Overall complexity

This is a companion consideration to the mobile app, relating primarily to the audience for whom the smart home system was developed. Is the system geared toward everyday users with limited customization needs? Or is it built with extreme flexibility in mind, to the point where the configuration decisions might overwhelm a novice user? Again, close attention to our reviews can help you gauge how comfortable you’re likely to feel with any system.

Subscription plan costs

Subscription plan costs vary widely from system to system, and many vendors offer a range of plans to choose from. Some systems–particularly those that aren’t focused on home security–will work with no service plan at all. Study any subscription plan options carefully before you pull the trigger on a smart home hub.